Deliverance Poker Sues Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi

Deliverance Poker probably wasn't expecting that they'd be the ones getting screwed on the river.

Another day, another lawsuit for Tilt.

Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi wore Deliverance Poker patches for the entirety of the 2010 WSOP (including his $50k Players Championship win). He wore Deliverance patches during the entirety of his Main Event run. Then, nearing the last day, he switched. Suddenly, he was donning Full Tilt caps and patches.

In most cases the switch wouldn’t haven’t have garnered much attention. But members of the so-called poker “media” had been rumbling about Deliverance from the get-go. Word was the company belonged to a Mizrachi relative (“cousin” was the most common conclusion). And rumors that Grinder had received a huge cash upfront payment and stake in the company were prevalent.

Turns out, the rumors were mostly true.

Deliverance Poker has sued The Grinder and Tiltware for breach of contract. According to the complaint, Deliverance paid Grinder $150,000, promised to cover expenses for poker tournaments, and gave him 1.75% equity in the company.

Deliverance claims that the deal with Tiltware constitutes breach of contract, because Mizrachi had agreed when signing with them that he would “exclusively wear site logoed shirts and caps during all Tournaments and Public Appearances” and that he would grant Deliverance exclusive right to his name, voice and likeness. It seeks to recover its lost earnings, profits and earning capacity, as well as any other damages the court might award it.

Read more on the lawsuit here. Mizrachi bros on Deliverance Poker’s website here. Grinder sporting the Deliverance patch here. And the Tilt one here.